ALBERTA WILDFIRE

FROM ALBERTA CANADA

Firefighters are bracing for another tough day battling a brushfire north of Edmonton after the blaze doubled in size and destroyed a home. A rural residence in the path of the fire burned to the ground Thursday night. Nobody was injured, officials said. The wildfire began near the hamlet of Opal, about 60 kilometres northeast of Edmonton, on Wednesday afternoon. Thorhild County declared a local state of emergency Thursday after strong winds caused the brushfire to flare up and start burning out of control. Opal residents were able to spend Thursday night in their homes after the wind shifted direction and an evacuation order was lifted, but Thorhild County Reeve Charles Newell said he is still concerned that dry weather conditions and wind could slow efforts to contain the fire. "Right now, I'm very concerned with the wind and the way it's changing and the speed of it and the fuel out there," Newell said. "This is really bad." The fire has grown from around 1,000 hectares to more than 2,500 since noon Thursday and has spread into Sturgeon County. The number of firefighters on the scene is expected to double Friday to about 250, and Alberta Sustainable Resource Development is expected to send in water bombers. Crews spent the night dousing homes in the fire's path with retardant and building a fire guard around the blaze.